Richmond, Sydney, Essendon hit by injury crisis as Adelaide star to undergo surgery: AFL updates

2026-06-13 02:47:42

The Tigers are licking their wounds after multiple youngsters have been ruled out for the remainder of the season.

Adelaide and Sydney are hopeful some of their forwards still have a role to play in 2025, while a former top 10 Pick has been sidelined by the
AFL
‘s Concussion Panel.

Here’s all the latest injury news from across the
AFL
…

Mixed news for Swans forward

Sydney tall
Joel Amartey
will struggle to make it back before the season ends after suffering a high-grade adductor strain that will see him miss at least eight weeks.

Scans also confirmed that fellow forward
Tom Papley
will be absent for two to three weeks with a low-grade hamstring strain.

Young Bomber ruled out of 2025

Essendon’s Nik Cox has been ruled out for the remainder of the 2025 season at the recommendation of the
AFL
‘s Concussion Panel.

Cox has suffered multiple head knocks over the past 18 months and was assessed by the governing body, which provided a clear return-to-play pathway, with one key aspect of it being to step away for the rest of the year.

"After meeting with an independent
AFL
medical panel regarding my concussion history, I’m pleased that I’ve been cleared to continue my playing career," Cox said.

"My focus now is on continuing to work closely with specialists and the club to make sure I’m in the best place physically and mentally to return to football."

Zach Reid
(hamstring) and
Jye Caldwell
(syndesmosis) will both require surgery to correct their injury woes suffered in recent weeks.

Reid experienced hamstring tightness, and scans revealed a minor strain, which has been deemed to need surgical intervention.

As for Caldwell, his timeline is unclear, but surgery in the coming days should help provide clarity on his return.

Adelaide star requires surgery

Josh Rachele
will be sent in for surgery after scans revealed he suffered a posterior capsular tear along with a bone compression injury against Melbourne.

His timeframe, however, is yet to be confirmed, but the Crows are "thankful" that it isn’t an ACL injury.

"Thankfully, Josh has avoided any ligament damage in the knee, which is a relief," Adelaide High-Performance Manager Darren Burgess said.

"He’ll have surgery to elevate the bone in his knee and likely be in a brace for a few weeks.

"Once out of the brace, we’ll progress his training loads from there."

Richmond youngster, speedster done

Richmond will lose
Sam Lalor
and
Hugo Ralphsmith
for the remainder of the year due to hamstring injuries.

The Tigers ruled out mismanagement of Lalor, given he just returned from a hamstring injury, saying he sustained the injury in a tackle and could be in line for surgery.

"After a strong, meticulous rehab, unfortunately, he did reinjure his hamstring. It is his third time on that hamstring and the second (occasion) with us," High Performance Manager Ben Serpell said.

"We are a bit concerned about the integrity of the hamstring structure.

"As part of that, we will consult a few surgeons over the next little while to see if there is some surgical intervention available for us."

"
Hugo Ralphsmith
sustained a hamstring injury late in the game, and unfortunately for both of them (Lalor), it’s going to rule them out for the rest of the year."

Jacob Bauer
will also miss the rest of 2025 due to an ACL injury, while
Samson Ryan
‘s timeline is unclear as he recovers from a persistent foot issue (plantar fasciitis).

More positively,
Jayden Short
(calf) and
Josh Gibcus
(ACL) made successful returns through the VFL.

“It was great to see Shorty out there, and I think most of the fans in Melbourne would’ve heard his voice down in Geelong,” Serpell said.

“Gibbo coming back after a couple of years, I think everyone was excited about that, and we are looking forward to seeing him increase his game time this week.”

Harry Armstrong
(hamstring) and
Campbell Gray
(knee) are also a test.

Roos son-of-a-gun downed by ankle injury

North Melbourne’s
Jackson Archer
won’t be seen again in 2025 after he suffered an ankle injury in the VFL over the weekend.

Archer’s ankle was caught in a tackle, with scans showing he fractured his fibula and sustained a syndesmosis injury, which will require surgery.

Star midfielder
Luke Davies-Uniacke
has entered concussion protocols after copping a knock during the
Western Bulldogs
loss.

Gun full forward
Nick Larkey
is in a race to be available for the Melbourne battle after flagging knee soreness following his five-goal effort.

"Nick suffered a knee knock in the first quarter, which has pulled up pretty sore over the past couple of days," North Melbourne head of performance Kevin White said.

"His plan will be to let symptoms settle in the early part of the week while he increases his range of movement before testing at the back end of the week."

Luke McDonald
(shoulder),
Luke Parker
(ribs),
Jack Darling
(groin) and
Charlie Comben
(shoulder) are all tests to take on the Demons.

Power out for trio

Sam Powell-Pepper
(ACL),
Esava Ratugolea
(hamstring), and
Dante Visentini
(syndesmosis) have all been ruled out for the remainder of the 2025 season.

Powell-Pepper suffered the heartbreaking injury during the loss to Brisbane, while Ratugolea and Visentini also sustained injuries throughout the contest.

"It’s such a disappointing outcome for Sam, and for the club," Port Adelaide Head of Medical Services Tim O’Leary said.

"Sam is so courageous and hard-working, and was incredibly diligent with his previous knee rehab. There is no doubt he will approach this rehab with his usual high level of commitment, attacking it in the same way he attacks the footy.

"It’s really unfortunate to lose Esava and Dante at this point in the year. The silver lining is that there will be no impact on their preseasons, which gives them the best chance to prepare for 2026."